Yay or Nay? Gucci Ilse Patent 110mm Sandals

So, it’s possible that I might have spoken a little too soon when I said that shoe design has suddenly gotten good, back at the start of the week. Just a little bit.

These are by Gucci, and, as you can see, they’re pretending to be a pair of red, strappy sandals, but they’re not: actually, they’re a pair of patent leather boots which just LOOK like sandals – if you kind of half-close your eyes, and kind of squint at them through your fingers, that is.

Let’s face it: no one is going to be tricked into thinking that these are actually sandals, are they? For one thing, not everyone has skin exactly this colour – which would be pretty essential if you wanted the boots to actually look like a bare leg – and, for another, even if they were an exact match, these don’t look remotely like skin, do they? In fact, they look more like prosthetic legs – 0r the legs of a mannequin:

Um, kinda creepy, no? Or is that just me?

I always think this kind of thing is a good idea in theory: I much prefer shoes to boots, and have spent many a winter morning standing in front of my closet, thinking about how much easier it would be to pick an outfit – and how much better it would look, as a result – if I didn’t have to base everything around boots. So, theoretically, boots that don’t actually look like boots would be a great thing for me – just… not these ones.

Of course, making these look realistic isn’t really the point here: I suspect they’re actually supposed to be a bit unexpected, and visually jarring, and they’ve certainly succeeded on that front, as far as I’m concerned. Because I’m one of those very basic people, who just likes their clothes to look good, though, I’m still not a fan: are you?

I read your first paragraph and was confused. These sandals are cute! A nice minimalistic design that would look great with all kinds of summer looks. Maybe not the most groundbreaking design, but we all need essentials that go with everything. And then it hit me…

Is there really a market out there for boots pretending to be sandals? I can’t imagine it’s something people were clamoring for, especially since, as you said, this would only work if you have super pale white skin.